Pesticides are chemical substances used to control or eliminate pests such as insects, weeds, and fungi. The use of pesticides in food has resulted in a range of benefits, currently there are over 1,000 pesticides that are being used worldwide and about 1 billion pounds are being used in the US each year. While pesticides can be effective in managing pests, they have also been found to have harmful effects on crops, wildlife, human health, and the environment. Many lack the basic understanding of pesticides, which is why today we will walk through and discuss the potential risks and benefits.
Pesticide Exposure
Exposure to pesticides can be through contact with the skin, ingestion, or inhalation. Large amounts of pesticides can be detected :
- In and around our homes
- On lawns and gardens
- On our pets
- Public buildings like work and schools
- Within our communities and environment
- And in just about 80% of the food that we eat….
Argued Benefits of Pesticides
Pest Control: Pesticides can effectively control pests, including insects, rodents, and weeds, reducing crop damage and losses. This helps maintain crop quality and quantity, leading to better economic outcomes for farmers.
Cost and Labor Efficiency: Pesticides can be a cost-effective and efficient solution for pest control. They require less manual labor and can cover larger areas more quickly, making them practical for large-scale agricultural operations.
Economic Stability: Pesticides can provide economic stability for farmers and agricultural industries by reducing losses caused by pests. This stability can contribute to overall economic growth and food availability.
Increased Crop Yields: Pesticides help protect crops from pests, diseases, and weeds, which can reduce yield and quality. By controlling or eliminating these threats, pesticides can contribute to higher crop yields and increased food production, potentially addressing global food scarcity.
Disease Prevention & Public Health: Pesticides can help prevent the transmission of diseases carried by insects, ticks, or rodents. For example, insecticides can reduce the spread of mosquito-borne diseases like malaria, dengue fever, or Zika virus.
Environmental Risks
“Pesticide Drift” is when air carries the pesticides to other non-targeted areas resulting in contamination. Pesticides can reach out to far destinations and contaminate important species, air, water and soil. Here are some of the environmental impacts of pesticide use.
Toxicity to non-target organisms: Pesticides can harm beneficial insects (bees & butterflies), birds, fish, and other wildlife. Pesticides disrupt ecosystems by reducing populations of beneficial species which leads to adverse consequences.
Pollination may become harder: Bees pollinate roughly 70 out of 100 crop species that feed the entire world. If pesticides are killing the bees, what happens to pollination? This could cause scarcity in food supply.
Soil contamination: Over time, significant amounts of pesticide toxins will transfer to the soil, which is detrimental for useful microorganisms that populate the soil. As a result the soil will become less fertile and will no longer be suitable for agricultural purposes in the future leading to food scarcity and nutrition deficiencies.
Water contamination: If pesticides are polluting the soil then best believe that they are polluting our drinking/groundwater as well. Pesticides are easily transferred to our water sources and cause harmful effects that disrupt the aquatic ecosystem.
Air pollution: Some pesticides spread into the air and contribute to air pollution. This affects air quality and potentially harms human and animal health.
Human Health Risks
Pesticides have been associated with various human health risks. Exposure to pesticides can occur through ingestion of contaminated food and water, inhalation, and direct skin contact. Certain groups, such as pregnant women, infants, children, the elderly, and individuals with pre-existing health conditions, may be more susceptible to the adverse effects of pesticide exposure due to their developing or compromised physiological systems. Here are some of the potential human health risks associated with pesticide exposure.
Acute Toxicity: Certain pesticides can cause acute poisoning symptoms when exposed to high levels causing nausea, vomiting, dizziness, headache, respiratory distress, skin irritation, and, in severe cases, seizures or even death.
Chronic Health Effects: Long-term exposure to pesticides has been linked to a range of chronic health effects, including:
Cancer: Some pesticides have been classified as carcinogens and have shown evidence of carcinogenicity in studies. Pesticides have been found to increase the risk of various cancers, such as leukemia, lymphoma, lung, breast, prostate, and others.
Reproductive Issues: Pesticides, particularly certain insecticides and herbicides, have been associated with reproductive problems in both men and women. These include fertility issues, miscarriages, birth defects, developmental disorders in children, and disruptions to normal hormonal function.
Neurotoxicity: Some pesticides can adversely affect the nervous system, leading to neurotoxic effects. This may result in symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, tremors, memory loss, impaired concentration, and in severe cases, neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s disease.
Endocrine Disruption: Certain pesticides, known as endocrine disruptors, can interfere with the normal function of hormones in the body. This can disrupt reproductive, developmental, and metabolic processes and lead to adverse health effects.
Respiratory Disorders: Inhalation of pesticide residues or vapors can irritate the respiratory system and worsen existing respiratory conditions such as asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Immune System Dysfunction: Pesticide exposure has been linked to immune system impairment, making individuals more susceptible to infections and autoimmune diseases.
Pesticide Resistance
Over time, pests can develop resistance to pesticides, rendering them less effective. This can lead to the increased use of pesticides or the need for more potent and potentially more harmful chemicals to control resistant pests.
EWG Dirty Dozen
The Environmental Working Group (EWG), a non-profit organization, publishes an annual report called the “Dirty Dozen” that lists the fruits and vegetables with the highest levels of pesticide residues. The list is based on data from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). If you want to reduce your exposure to pesticides in food, you may consider purchasing organic varieties of the following fruits and vegetables:
- Strawberries
- Spinach
- Kale
- Nectarines
- Apples
- Grapes
- Peaches
- Cherries
- Pears
- Tomatoes
- Celery
- Potatoes
EWG Clean Fifteen
The EWG also publishes a list called the “Clean Fifteen,” which includes fruits and vegetables that have relatively low levels of pesticide residues. These are considered to be safer options if you’re concerned about pesticide exposure. The “Clean Fifteen” for 2021 were:
- Avocados
- Sweet corn
- Pineapple
- Onions
- Papaya
- Sweet peas (frozen)
- Eggplants
- Asparagus
- Broccoli
- Cabbage
- Kiwi
- Cauliflower
- Mushrooms
- Honeydew melon
- Cantaloupe
Washing and peeling conventionally grown fruits and vegetables can help remove some pesticide residues. If you have concerns about pesticide exposure consider purchasing organic produce, as organic farming methods generally limit the use of synthetic pesticides in food. I hope that you find this blog to be helpful and make the necessary changes towards organic clean eating. Also be sure to check out amazon finds for top rated products on the market!
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